A Brighter Day Begins with His Word.

PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK

Horae Homileticae — Volume 8 of 21

Simeon, Charles, 1759-1836 · 282,151 words · 604 reading sections

SECTION 1

Isaiah

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SECTION 2

Isaiah

Discoano. Text. 924. xl. 27—31. 925. xli. 10. 926. xli. 14—16. 927. xli. 17, 18. 928. xlii. 5—7. 929. xlii. 16. 930. xliii. 1—3. 93 1 . xliii. 4. 932. xliii. 12. 933. xliii. 20. 934. xliii. 22 — 26. 935. xliv. 1—5. 936. xliv. 20. 937. xliv. 22. 938. xliv. 23. 939. xlv. 8. 940. xlv. 9.…

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SECTION 3

Isaiah

Text. Subject. Page 957. li. 1—3. Consolation for the Afflicted 286 958. li. 7, 8. A Dissuasive from the Fear of Man . 290 959. li. 9, 10. The Church pleading with God 294 960. lii. 1—3. 299 961. Hi. 7. 962. lii. 8. The Saint's Vision of Christ 307 963. lii. 13. Christ rewarded for his Service…

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SECTION 4

Isaiah

Subject. 990. 991. 992. 993. 994. 995. 99G. 997. 998. 999. 1000. 1001. 1002. 1003. 1004. 1005. 1006. 1007. 1008. 1009. 1010. 1011. 1012. 1013. 1014. 1015. 1016. 1017. 1018. 1019. 1020. 1021. 1022. 1023. 1024. 1025. lvii. 17, 18. lvii. 20, 21. lviii. 1. lviii. 5—11. lviii. 13, 14…

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SECTION 5

Dcccxcvii.

god's care for his church. Isai. xxvii. 3. I the Lord do keep it : I will water it every moment : lest any hurt it, I loill keep it night and day. GOD has provided abundant consolation for his Church in seasons of the greatest trial : and he calls upon her to enjoy her privileges and to celebrate them in " a resp…

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SECTION 6

2 Isaiah, Xxvii. 3. [897.

But she is preserved by an invisible, but almighty Protector — [Jehovah himself interposes on her behalf. He preserves her, as the bush in the midst of the flames, burning, but not consumed d. He protects his Church in general, that " the gates of hell may not prevail against her ;" and he keeps all her members i…

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SECTION 7

898. J The Future Prosperity Of Israel. 3

[God has, in this land, a remnant, over whom he watches with the tenderest care, and for whose sake we trust he will spare the whole nation. At all events we may be sure that he will provide a hiding-place for his Church ; so that, whatever be the fate of others, it shall not be overwhelmed k. Let us not then trus…

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SECTION 8

4 Isaiah, Xxvii. 6. [898.

Isai. xxvii. 6. He shall cause them that come of Jacob to take root : Israel shall blossom and bud, and Jill the face of the world with fruit. OF all the people upon the earth, the Jews have been, beyond comparison, the most highly honoured of their God. To no other nation did Jehovah ever manifest himself by suc…

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SECTION 9

898.] The Future Prosperity Of Israel. 5

their whole conduct. Not " a blossom or a bud" of true godliness is to be seen among them : and so far are they from '*. filling the world with fruit," that they are altogether immersed in selfishness, and lost to every thing but worldly gain. But far other things are reserved for them. The time is coming when th…

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SECTION 10

G Isaiah, Xxvii. G. [898.

deep their convictions, that it will be as if they saw him face to face : as it is said, " They shall see eye to eye, when the Lord shall bring again Zionc."] 2. They shall be fertile in the fruits of piety — [As they are destined to " take root downward, so are they ordained also to bear fruit upward d." In that …

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SECTION 11

898.] The Future Prosperity Of Israel. 7

destined office, we are sure : for God himself says respecting them, " They shall declare my glory among the Gentiles ; and they shall bring all your brethren for an offering unto the Lord, out of all nations, upon horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and upon mules, and upon swift beasts, to my holy mountain …

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SECTION 12

8 Isaiah, Xxvii. G. [898.

buds which promise an abundant supply of fruit. No person, with these objects before him, doubts of their comparative value : no one doubts which of the two better answers the end of all the cultivation bestowed upon it, or which is the more acceptable to him on whose ground they stand. Know ye then, my Brethren, …

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SECTION 13

898.1 The Future Prosperity Of Israel. 9

[How little of this piety is to be seen amongst us ! Men are "rooted" indeed; but it is in the world, and not in Christ. And there is, to a certain degree, a form of godliness amongst us ; but its power is sadly wanting. Nor is there altogether a want of benevolence ; but it is displayed rather to the bodies than …

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SECTION 14

Conversion Of The Jews Gradual.

Isai. xxvii. 12, 13. It shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall beat off from the channel of the river unto the stream of Egypt, and ye shall be gathered one by one, O ye children of Israel. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the great trumpet shall be blown, and they shall come which were rea…

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SECTION 15

899.] Conversion Of The Jews Gradual. 11

[There are even amongst wise and good men some who doubt whether the Jews shall literally be restored to their own land ; and therefore I would speak with diffidence respecting it : but I confess that in my opinion the declarations of God respecting it are so strong and numerous, that I should scarcely know what t…

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SECTION 16

12 Isaiah, Xxvii. 12, 13. [899.

come in due season. Scattered as they now are, and at the utmost possible distance from Christianity, the time is coming, when " the good Shepherd will seek and search them out, and bring them into his fold, and cause them to feed upon the mountains of Israel e." Then, says God, " I will set up one Shepherd over t…

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SECTION 17

899.] Conversion Of The Jews Gradual. 13

or shake it off, from the tree, in order to gather it for him. The success that will attend their labours will not be great: the Jews will be gathered only, as if it were, " one by one." But to them it will be a joyful event, that they have not been left to be devoured by the birds, but have been collected for the…

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14 Isaiah, Xxvii. 12, 13. [899.

country, and gather them from the coasts of the earth, and with them the blind and the lame, the woman with child, and her that travaileth with child, together; a great company shall return thither. They shall come with weeping, and with sup- plications will I lead them : I will cause them to walk by the rivers of…

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899.] Conversion Of The Jews Gradual. 15

they shall be his people ; and God himself shall be with them, and be their GodV] See then from hence, 1. How groundless is the objection which so many raise against the efforts that are making for the con- version of the Jews, that they are useless — [Many ask, not with grief and sorrow, but with a kind of mali…

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16 Isaiah, Xxvii. 12, 13. [899.

to be only as slender. gleanings ; but is this a reason why we should not search them out, and endeavour with care and labour to beat the tree? If a house with only half-a-dozen persons in it should be on fire, and some were exerting them- selves for their preservation, what would you think of the humanity of the …

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SECTION 21

900.1 Ti1E Felicity Of Gods People. 17

heaven nothing hut " the gleanings." The Lord's people are but " a little flock;" and in comparison of the multitudes who go in " the broad road that leadeth to destruction," they are but " few" who " enter in at the strait gate, and walk in the narrow path." Forgive me, then, if with holy violence I en- veavour t…

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18 Isaiah, Xxviii. 5. [900.

Isai. xxviii. 5. In that day shall the Lord of Hosts be for a crotvn of glory, and for a diadem of beauty unto the residue of his people. THE sublime expressions of Scripture frequently raise in our minds a pleasing sensation, while yet we entertain but very confused notions of the truths contained in them. It is…

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20 Isaiah, Xxviii. 5. [900.

Their state however is peculiarly happy ; for, II. While they honour God, God greatly exalts and blesses them — The terms used in the text import that God will be to his people a source of, 1. Honour — [A crown is the highest honour to which a human being can aspire in this world. But how poor and contemptible i…

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20 Isaiah, Xxviii. 5. [900.

b Isai. xxxiii. 10. c Isai. xxxiii. 21. d Zech. ii. 5. 900.] THE FELICITY OF GOD's PEOPLE. 21 his hand?" Having him, they have all. If " none can separate them from his love," their honour and beauty, their happiness and security, are as firm and immovable as God himself.] Infer — 1 . How desirable is it to be fo…

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SECTION 25

The Millennial Period Fast Approaching.

Isai. xxix. 17. Is it not yet a very little while, and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest ? OUR blessed Lord reproved the Scribes and Pha- risees of his day ; because when, from particular ap- pearances in the atmosphere, they could judge with consi…

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SECTION 26

901.] The Millennial Period Fast Approaching. 23

which abounds in amplification, and, if I may so say, exagger- tion. Thus this same prophet, speaking of this same period, says, " Behold, I create new heavens, and a new earth ; and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not…

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?A Isaiah, Xxix. 17. [901.

Lord shall be written upon the very bells of the horses1," that are used in agricultural pursuits ; and " all the kingdoms of the world shall become the kingdom of the Lord and his ChristV] The appeal made to us respecting this blessed period leads me to shew, II. The evidence we have of its near approach — The p…

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901.] The Millennial Period Fast Approaching. 25

by sending out missionaries also to instruct both Jews and Gentiles, and by instilling into the rising generation the know- ledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. These efforts are altogether unprecedented, both in respect of energy and extent : and, whilst they shew that God is with his people to call forth …

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SECTION 29

The Gospel A Source Of Blessings To Mankind.

world. Even in the Apostle's days, females had their depart- ment of labour, and laboured too with good success, as well as men8: and at this time, also, there is a call for the exertions of every soul amongst us : and though we have in ourselves no more power or efficiency than rams' horns, yet will God by us dem…

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SECTION 30

902.] The Gospel A Source Of Blessings. 27

and the fruitful field (such as it will then exist) shall be esteemed as a forest ;" seeing that " the handful of corn cast upon the top of the mountains" will spring up so abundantly, that " the fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon*" This is the kind of climax which often occurs in relation to that very period,…

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28 Isaiah, Xxix. 18, 19. [902.

of the seers, and the predictions of the prophets, are contained. This is the book in relation to which God had poured out upon the Jewish nation a spirit of deep sleep, and had closed their eyes, even the eyes of their prophets, their rulers, and their seers ; inso- much that it was altogether as " a sealed book,…

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902.] The Gospel A Source Of Blessings. 29

1. To enter a little into its contents — [It reveals to man a Saviour. It declares that God, in tender mercy to our fallen race, sent his only dear Son into the world, to make an atonement for us, and to effect by his own obedience unto death, our reconciliation with him The Old Testament revealed this as to be ef…

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30 Isaiah, Xxix. 18, 19. [902.

from the general malady, they only prove the more strongly the universality of this truth. Under these two figures may be comprehended all the necessities of our fallen nature : for as a person who has from his birth been destitute of sight and hear- ing can possess no intellectual attainments, so those who are by …

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903.] Confidence In God Recommended. 31

demonstration of the Spirit and of power, nothing can stand before it. It has already prevailed to a vast extent over the powers of darkness, and in God's good time it shall " subdue all nations to the obedience of faith." One effect in particular it invariably produces, wherever it is received in spirit and in tr…

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32 Isaiah, Xxx. 7. [903.

Isai. xxx. 7. Therefore have I cried concerning this, Their strength is, to sit still. NOTHING is more strongly inculcated in the Holy Scriptures than trust in God. Nothing more dishonours him than the want of it : nothing more glorifies him than its unreserved exercise. Not that it supersedes the necessity of ex…

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903. J Confidence In God Recommended. 33

glory and honour and immortality"1." We must therefore abound in every good work";" and, "whatever our hand findeth to do, we must do it with all our might0."] 3. When the salvation of the soul is concerned — [That salvation is the gift of God, is no reason why we should neglect to seek it. On the contrary, our Lo…

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34 Isaiah, Xxx. 7. [903.

Now the same line of conduct becomes us also, in reference to the redemption of our souls. God says to us, " Christ, your passover is sacrificed for your:" sprinkle yourselves with his blood : rely on that for protection : and, though the curses of my law are following you, and all the powers of darkness are combi…

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903.1 Confidence In God Recommended. 35

selves that " in the mount of difficulty he will be seenc." The direction to all the Lord's people is, " He that believeth, shall not make haste'1."] 3. When personal exertion will take the matter out of God's hands — [We admire the conduct of David, who, in his conflict with Goliath, would take nothing with him …

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36 Isaiah, Xxx. 26. [904.

of their souls, will say, ' I have no fear; I trust in God.' But it is a desperate delusion to say, ' I trust in God,' when they use not the means which God himself has appointed for the attainment of the end. What would these persons themselves think of a man who should say, ' I trust in God for an harvest,' whil…

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Dcccciv.

BENEFITS ARISING FROM GOD's RETURN TO THE SOUL. Isai. xxx. 26. Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the Lord bindeth up the breach of his people, and healeth the stroke of their wound. THE dispensat…

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38 Isaiah, Xxx. 26. [904.

2. At any return of God to the soul after a season of darkness and desertion — [God finds it necessary sometimes to hide his face from his people, and thus to wound their souls afresh. How the loss of God's presence afflicts a pious soul, may be seen in the lamentations and complaints which the most eminent saints…

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40 Isaiah, Xxxi. 4, 5. [905.

Application — P Jer. xxx. 12 — 15. i Jer. xxx. 16, 17. The word therefore should here be translated " nevertheless." r Jer. xxxiii. (>. s Jer. xxxiii. 7 — 11. with Rom. xi. 12, 13. 1 Isai. xxiv. 23. u Isai. xxxv. 10. x Rev. xxi. 23 — 26. and xxii. 5. 1. Let us look forward then to that blessed period — [We need…

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905.] God The Protector Of His People. 41

GOD THE PROTECTOR OF HIS PEOrLE. Isai. xxxi. 4, 5. Thus hath the Lord spoken unto me, Like as the lion and the young lion roaring on his prey, ivhen a mul- titude of shepherds is called forth against him, he will not be afraid of their voice, nor abase himself for the noise of them : so shall the Lord of hosts com…

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42 Isaiah, Xxxi. 4, 5. [905.

round about them," that shall devour their assailants f. He may indeed suffer the enemies of his people to prevail for a season ; and they may vaunt, as the Assyrians did, of all their conquests : but they are only as a rod in Jehovah's hands ; and all which they effect is only as the axe or saw that accomplishes …

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905. J God The Protector Of His People. 43

intervention in that instance, that, whilst in every other house, throughout all the land of Egypt, the first-born both of man and beast was slain, in the houses of the Hebrews died not so much as oneq. And, when was so much as one true believer ever left to perish ? We are expressly told, that " it is not the wil…

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44 Isaiah, Xxxi. 4, 5. [905.

hills (to any earthly powers) ? From whence then cometh our help? Our help cometh from the Lord, who (is not only above them all, but made them all, yea,) made heaven and earth2." It is not possible for our confidence in God to be too strong, provided we leave to God the time and manner of fulfilling his promises.…

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900.] Security And Comfort In Christ. 45

help them, and deliver them : he shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them, because they trust in him1."] 3. Fidelity — [Believing in God, we have nothing to fear, and nothing even to think of, but how we may best serve and honour him. St. Paul, when in daily expectation of a cruel death, said, " None of …

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46 Isaiah, Xxxii. 2. [906.

Isai. xxxii. 2. A man shall be as an hiding-place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest ; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadoio of a great rock in a weary land. THERE is no greater blessing to a nation than a well-ordered government. The due administration of justice, together with the protectio…

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906.] Security And Comfort In Christ. 47

[To his atonement we owe all our hopes of salvation. If he had not expiated our guilt we could never have obtained mercy. If he had not purchased for us the gift of the Holy Ghost, we never could have mortified our inward corruptions. But through his death we are freed from the apprehensions of wrath ; and through…

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48 Isaiah, Xxxii. 16, 17. [907.

We do not mean to exclude his Godhead from this great work of redemption : it is that which gives efficacy to all which he did and suffered as man. But never- theless it is as man, that is, as the God-man, that we feel our relation to him, and have access unto him as our sympathizing friend. Infer — 1. What obje…

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907. J The Work Of Righteousness Is Peace. 49

Isai. xxxii. 16, 17. Then judgment shall dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness remain in the fruitful field. And the work of righteousness shall be peace ; and the effect of righteous- ness, quietness and assurance for ever. THROUGH the introduction of sin into the world, man was altogether despoiled both of …

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.50 Isaiah, Xxxii. 16, 17. [907.

By "judgment and righteousness," I understand not merely that which is called justice between man and man, but universal holiness. And this will certainly characterize the Gospel dispensation — [This is evident from the very metaphor before us. In other parts of this prophecy the metaphor is yet further opened an…

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907. ]] The Work Of Righteousness Is Peace. 51

bringeth salvation, was designed to teach us, that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world'1."'] But it is not the occasional existence, so much as the abiding habit, of holiness, which is to distinguish this day — [" Judgment is to dwell, and …

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52 Isaiah, Xxxii. 16, 17. [907.

under his tongue for a moment ; but it will prove the gall of asps within him. There is no exception to that truth, " The way of transgressors is hard." But there is not a grace which can be exercised that does not tranquillize the mind. All imaginable graces, whether towards God or man, may be re- solved into the…

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907.] Tiie Work Of Righteousness Is Teace. 53

says, " Hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him : for if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things : but if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence towards God*." And hence we may say to the whole world, " Mark the perfect man, and…

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54 Isaiah, Xxxiii. G. [908.

then, bring yourselves to this test : and never be satisfied with any faith or any profession, that does not approve itself genuine according to the standard of God's unerring word.] 2. How to be happy in your own souls — [It is not any earthly gratification that can make you happy. Our Lord does not say, Blessed …

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908.] The Use And Excellency Of True Wisdom. 55

Isai. xxxiii. 6. Wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times, and strength of salvation : the fear of the Lord is his treasure. THIS is spoken respecting Hezekiah,king of Judah. His country had been invaded by Sennacherib, king of Assyria, by whom all the fenced cities of Judah had been taken. To arr…

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56 Isaiah, Xxxiii. 6. [908.

By " wisdom and knowledge" we are not to un- derstand what we generally comprehend under the term " science ; " for we do not apprehend that the Jewish nation, at that time, or indeed at any time, made any great proficiency in that species of learning. By " wisdom and knowledge" is meant a conformity of heart and…

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908.] The Use And Excellency Of True Wisdom. 57

Now, of this "wisdom and knowledge" it may be justly affirmed, that it tends to the stability of every empire in which it is found. So far as it prevailed at any time in the Jewish State, (for it was revealed to them, though darkly, in their ceremonial law,) they prospered: and whenever it was banished, they were …

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58 Isaiah, Xxxiii. G. [908.

was exposed. Certain I am, that " true wisdom and knowledge" have a proper tendency to promote our national welfare : as it is said, " Righteousness ex- alteth a nation ; but sin is the reproach of any peo- ple1"." Mere science may be associated with every thing that is evil : but piety, so far as it is true and …

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Source & rights

Public domain historical edition (1832-33); scan/OCR from Internet Archive.

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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.